(Continued from issue #299)
Lunchtime Instructional Talk by Dharma Master Heng Gwei on November 18, 2018,
at Gold Wheel Sagely Monastery Emperor Liang’s Jeweled Repentance Dharma Assembly
After Dhyana Master Zhi-Gong and his team completed compiling this repentance volume, they pondered on what to name it? This morning, we heard in the instructional talk and we also recited, that Dhyana Master Zhi-Gong had a response from Maitreya Buddha in his dream. Maitreya Bodhisattva instructed them to name the repentance text “Kind and Compassionate Bodhimandala”.
What is “Kindness and Compassion”? Kindness is the ability to furnish joy. A kind person always brings peace and joy to the people around him. The people around him are very happy. He always utilizes his heart of kindness and compassion to bestow joy to others. Kindness bestows joy; compassion eradicates suffering. A mind that is compassionate and empathetic can eradicate people’s suffering.
This is especially true of the Buddha. The Buddha is an omniscient being. His kindness and compassion are the most magnanimous. Therefore, he cannot bear to see living beings suffer. Living beings make mistakes because of ignorance. Ignorance is the state of being muddled and unclear. In this state of confusion, people make mistakes. Through their body, mouth and mind, they have committed various acts that are defiled and are not in accordance with the dharma. Having committed offenses, suffering ensues. The greatly kind and compassionate Buddha cannot bear to see living beings suffer; he wants to help living beings eradicate their suffering and calamities. For this reason, the Buddha taught us this dharma door of repentance.
Having kindness and compassion is having the Buddha mind. Since we are disciples of the Buddha, we must cultivate the way. What do we cultivate? We must return to our original nature, return to our Buddha mind. We must constantly remind ourselves that we are disciples of the Triple Jewel. Since we have taken refuge with the Buddha, we must learn from the Buddha. What are we learning from the Buddha? We must learn the Buddha’s kindness and compassion. Not only are the minds of the Buddha replete with kindness and compassion, but so are the minds of all living beings. Our minds are identical to that of the Buddha.
Our original mind was also magnanimous with great kindness and compassion. But due to the thought of ignorance, we have covered up our minds to great kindness and compassion. Some people have covered up so much of it, leaving only a tiny bit. Some people have less of it covered up, therefore, they have a bit more kindness and compassion. Regardless, we must constantly remind ourselves to take the Buddha’s mind as our own so that we can return to our original home — the Buddha’s home.
(To be continued …)